


The Royal Family of The Heartland

by RulerOfTheInches



Category: The Two Princes (Podcast)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Fluff, M/M, Parenthood
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-11-05
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:47:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 6,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27194651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RulerOfTheInches/pseuds/RulerOfTheInches
Summary: A collection of oneshots about King Amir, King Rupert and their son Prince Wenceslaus.
Relationships: Amir/Rupert (Two Princes Podcast)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 60





	1. Prince Wenceslaus

**Chapter 1: Prince Wenceslaus**

  
Wenceslaus was happier than he had been in years. He was living in a castle instead of a abandoned zoo, and he had two fathers who loved him very much. Oh, he also now had a dragon for a pet, which for an animal lover much like himself is a dream come true. All in all, life was good for the young boy of eight years.   
Our story begins much like everybody else’s, with waking up. Wenceslaus woke up on warm early fall morning. He jumped out of bed, dressed himself in his clothes for the day and sprinted down to breakfast. However, on the way he almost ran straight into Sir Joan.  
“Woah there, little prince” she said, “Where are you off to so quickly this morning?”  
“Breakfast” he replied.  
“Well slow down, it’ll be just as delicious when you get there.”  
And off he went. He finally reached the dining room to be greeted by his two fathers, King Rupert and King Amir of the Heartland.  
“Good Morning Wenceslaus” they both said.  
“Good Morning Amir, Good Morning Rupert” he said to his fathers.  
Given his age when they first adopted him, Rupert and Amir gave him a choice. He could either call them both Dad, a special name that he could choose or simply just Amir and Rupert. In the end he chose the third option because that’s how he knew them. However, sometimes when addressing them both he would call them dads or Amir and Rupert.  
“Do you know what day it is?” Rupert asked.  
Wenceslaus pondered for a moment while shoveling pancakes and bacon into his mouth.  
“It’s Saturday, right?” He replied.  
“That’s right” said Amir, “and since your father and I don’t have any duties this afternoon, we were thinking about going on a little outing this afternoon, just the three of us.”  
“And we were wondering what you would want to do?” Rupert replied.  
The boy thought about it for a second. A whole afternoon with his fathers, so many options. In the end he decided there was only one thing that he wanted to do.  
“Could we got out to the forest?” he asked, “And bring along Porridge and Fitzroy?”  
“Absolutely” replied Amir.  
“Would you want to bring along Spike as well?” asked Rupert.  
“No, he’s tired enough after all the fun we had yesterday” said the young prince.  
And so the plans had been made. Rupert and Amir would hold court like they did every morning, and Wenceslaus would go off and play visit Spike in the stables. At lunch they would take a picnic and head out to the forest.

After hiking for a short while they came upon a clearing where they set up their little picnic. They had sandwiches, potatoes, bread and for dessert a nice blueberry pie.  
The happy family ate, laughed and played.  
“Dads. Could I go for a ride on Porridge?” Wenceslaus asked.  
“I don’t know” responded Amir, “Rupert, do you think Porridge can handle it?”  
“I don’t see why not, he’s grown a lot since we first got him and Wenceslaus is not that heavy.” Responded Rupert.  
“Ok then, but don’t go to high or to far, and be safe.” Said Amir.  
Wenceslaus hopped on to Porridge’s back and put his arms around the dragon. They raced of into the air, flying just above the tree line.  
The two kings laughed as they watched their son and dragon up in the air. Truly, after all they’d been through, this was pure bliss.


	2. Busy Day

It was a plain and very boring Wednesday in the Heartland. For the Royal Family however, it was a unusually busy day.   
After holding court in the morning Rupert and Amir set off to do their royal duties after lunch. Wenceslaus was off at his lessons with tutors meant to get him ready for school.

Amir was in a rather boring military meeting. Normally, these meeting were a bit more exciting, talking about potential threats. However, today was about deciding on a new standard in sword length.  
“I think two and a half feet is sufficient” said Joan.   
“Are you crazy, it should at least be three feet long” retorted Percy Junior.  
Amir sighed. Personally he could care less about sword length. He always just used one that felt comfortable to him... that’s it.   
“I got it!” He exclaimed, “Look, obviously sword length depends on personal preference and what feels comfortable.”   
They nodded and looked at him expectantly.  
“What I’m trying to say is that each soldier should decide for themselves what they want in sword length.” He continued.  
All in attendance nodded. After ten more minutes of mindless discussion, everyone left the room.   
Amir pinched his nose. In thirty minutes he had a joint meeting with Rupert about trade agreements. He needed a second to himself.

Rupert was in his study working on the proposal for the trade meeting. He wasn’t really working on it anymore as he had been done for about five minutes.   
He wasn’t really looking forward to the meeting because it was going to be boring and quite frankly wasn’t about anything new. Really they were renewing a trade agreement with the Hinterlands.   
He put his head on the table. He had thirty minutes to kill before the meeting, his only bit of free time for the rest of the day. He got up deciding on what he wanted to do for his small period of free time.

To say Wenceslaus was bored was an understatement. His history tutor was going on and on about an economic collapse in the west that had happened two centuries ago. It was a “fun fact” that had nothing to do with the lesson and quite frankly wasn’t that fun.   
“Alright Wenceslaus” his tutor said, “I’m done for today, Mr. Grant will be here in an hour to give you your math lesson.”   
The tutor left and Wenceslaus sighed. Rupert and Amir had hired several tutors to teach him and get him caught up enough to go to the school in the village. He had missed enough school from his time alone in the Hinterlands.   
With an hour before his next lesson, he knew there was one thing he wanted to do.

Amir was down in the courtyard by a fountain. He simply closed his eyes and enjoyed the sound of rushing water. It relaxed him from a stressful day of meaningless meetings.   
“Funny running into you here” said a familiar voice.   
He opened his eyes and saw Rupert standing over him. Amir smiled as Rupert sat down next to him.   
“Needed a second of relaxation” he said.   
“I understand, I’ve been working on that trade proposal all afternoon.” Said Rupert.   
Rupert put his head on Amir’s shoulder. Just at that moment Wenceslaus snuck into the courtyard unaware that his parents were sitting there. As he approached a tree he liked sit under, Amir noticed him.   
“Wenceslaus!” He called to his son.   
Wenceslaus did a double take then walked over to his fathers.   
“Well I suppose we all needed a little break” laughed Rupert.   
Wenceslaus sat between his fathers and they each hugged him. And so the Royal Family sat like that, having a nice moment of peace together before they had to go back to their royal duties.


	3. Bed Time

The sun was beginning to set over the Heartland. In the town, people were starting to close their shops for the day and go home. In the castle, things were settling down as well.   
After giving Wenceslaus a bath, the kings were ready to put him to bed. The prince however was not ready. He was still running about his room full of energy. The kings looked on exasperated.   
“Wenceslaus” said Rupert, “please it’s time for you to go to sleep.”   
“I’m not tired.” He responded.   
“How about this?” Said Amir, “If we tell you are story, will you go to bed?”   
Wenceslaus stopped for a moment and considered what his dad said.   
“What type of story?” He asked.   
“Any type you want.” Responded Rupert.   
“Can I... hear the story of how you two met?”   
Amir and Rupert looked at each other with a mix of nostalgia and nervousness. While the story of how they met was one they both cherished in their hearts, they were worried about telling it to Wenceslaus. On one hand it was a wonderful love story filled with adventure, but it was tainted by the memory of their fathers.   
After coming to a silent agreement they made their decision.   
“Ok Wenceslaus, we’ll tell you the story of how we met.” Said Amir.   
“Hooray!” Exclaimed Wenceslaus and he went and laid down in his bed.   
Rupert began to tell the story.

“As you know up until about a year or so ago the forest was invading and covering the land. I wanted to do something about it but, my mother wouldn’t tell me the prophecy. So one day she tried to marry me off, literally tying to chair in my pajamas.” Rupert started. Wenceslaus laughed at the thought of his father tied to a chair in his evening clothes. “And so that night the forest attacked and I got away. However not even a day into my expedition and I was trapped by a plant, that’s when your father showed up.”   
“I fought the plant and rescued Rupert.” Continued Amir. “When we finally got a chance to catch our breath I asked the handsome dimwit in distress for his name. He told me was a thief named Fitz.”   
“Wait, you named your self after your dog?” Laughed Wenceslaus.   
“Hey I panicked” Said Rupert. “After that we continued on for a few days fighting monsters and surviving the woods. It was later when I told Amir the truth, that I was the prince of the west. That’s when he told me the prophecy that we were fated to kill each other.”   
Wenceslaus gasped.   
“But, obviously it never came to that.” said Amir. “We reached the hollow of the kings where our fathers were waiting for us. They tried to get us to fight, but we refused. At that point our mothers showed up and were taken hostage by our tree dads. We fought briefly, but in the end we realized that we love each other, we kissed and then our fathers and the forest disappeared.”   
Amir and Rupert looked down and saw that Wenceslaus was asleep. They smiled and exited the room. Hand and hand as they walked back to their own room.

“He’s a little ball of energy isn’t he.” Said Amir.   
He and Rupert were getting ready for bed. It had been a long day of meetings, solving problems and trying their best at parenting.   
“He’s energetic but at least he’s well behaved.” Said Rupert. “Besides he loves us and we love him and that’s all that matters.”   
“I know, and I love him for it.”   
“Come on let’s go to sleep, we got a big day tomorrow.”   
And so the two kings of the Heartland fell asleep in each other’s arms. 


	4. Grandmothers’ Visit

The Royal Family of the Heartland was sitting down for lunch. Nothing at all out of the ordinary, they had gone about their normal Sunday routine. Sunday was the one day they didn’t hold court so they slept in, waking up later than usual. They then had spent a little time to go about their own little personal projects.   
Amir was spending time learning about new technologies that could make life better in the kingdom. Rupert was tending to a little garden he kept in courtyard. Wenceslaus of corse could be found in the stables playing with his unicorn (goat) Spike.   
Anyways, nothing out of the ordinary happened until they had just sat down. Horns blared outside and the Chamberlain entered the room.   
“Your Majesties” he said, “your mothers Queen Lavinia of the West and Queen Atossa of the East have arrived.”   
Rupert and Amir looked at each other confused.   
“Were you expecting our mothers to come visit today?” Asked Amir.   
“No. Were you?” Responded Rupert.   
“Well tell them to come in, they can join us for lunch.” Said Amir.   
The Chamberlain nodded and exited the room. A few minutes later Lavinia and Atossa entered the dining room. The kings greeted their mothers with hugs.   
“Mom. Atossa. We weren’t expecting you.” Said Rupert.   
“To what do we owe this lovely surprise?” Asked Amir.   
“We have come to see our sons and grandson.” Responded Atossa.   
“Yes, we haven’t seen any of you since the wedding.” Said Lavinia. “Now Wenceslaus dear, come here and let your grandma’s give you a kiss.”   
Wenceslaus reluctantly walked over to his grandmas and they each placed a kiss on his cheek.   
The two queens sat down at the table opposite their grandson while Rupert and Amir both sat at the ends of the table. They eat and chatted for the most part, mostly about the state of their kingdoms and how well domestic life was going for the Royal Family.   
“Do how long will you be staying?” Asked Rupert.   
“At least until tomorrow” responded Lavinia, “We wouldn’t want to overstay our welcome, plus we still have kingdoms to run.”   
“Well you’re welcome to stay as long as you please.” Said Amir.   
“Thank you son” said Atossa.

The rest of the day was spent showing the queens around the kingdom and showing them the progress they made. Wenceslaus hung back, he had always felt a little awkward around his grandmothers. It’s not that he didn’t love them but, he always had a hard time communicating with them. Atossa was about the pursuit of knowledge and peace, and Lavinia was all about cleanliness and fancy stuff. Coming from the background of being a zookeeper with very little educational opportunities, and even more limited opportunities to practice good hygiene, he was a little intimidated by his grandparents. He also hadn’t talked to them much other than a fifteen minute conversation with both of them at his fathers’ wedding. He felt like they were complete strangers.   
He kept close though, hoping to catch something that would allow him to connect with his fathers’ mothers.

It was later that night as he was getting ready for bed that Wenceslaus heard a knock at his door. He went and opened it expecting his dads to be there to put him to bed as they did every night. However, instead of Rupert and Amir, his grandmothers were at the door.   
“Good evening Wenceslaus” said Lavinia, “we told your fathers we’d put you to bed tonight. I hope that’s alright?”   
Wenceslaus nodded.   
“Excellent, now before you go to bed we have a few presents.” Said Atossa.   
Wenceslaus’ eyes widened, he hadn’t expected to receive gifts. Lavinia approached him first pulling out a beautiful locket from her pocket.   
“This locket has been passed down for generations in my family and I want you to have it as a reminder of the love that comes from family.” She said.   
She gave him the locket and he opened it. Wenceslaus gasped. Inside was a drawing of him and his fathers and a drawing of his grandmothers.   
“And I would like to give you this” Atossa said, “it is a sword crafted by the finest blacksmiths in the East.”   
She handed him the sword.   
“Every prince should have one, whether he fights in battle or refrains from it.” She continued.   
“Thank you Queen Lavinia. Thank you Queen Atossa.” Said Wenceslaus.   
“Please. You can call us Grandma Atossa and Grandma Lavinia.” Said Atossa.   
Wenceslaus nodded.   
“Just know that we love you and that your free to come visit us anytime.” Said Lavinia.   
The two queens kissed him in the forehead and he went to sleep quite peacefully.


	5. Nightmare

Wenceslaus was walking in a wood, when he came upon two trees. He didn’t know how he he had got there or when he got there. The last thing he remembered were his dads putting him to bed. Yet some how in the dead of night he appeared in the forest. He was scared, he wished his dads were with him or Porridge. However, he was alone, exploring this dark and dangerous forest alone.   
He came upon two trees that twisted around each other. He didn’t know why but he got a bad feeling from them. Their branches loomed over him menacingly.  
“Wenceslaus.” said a voice.   
“Who said that?” Yelled Wenceslaus.   
“Here.” Said another voice.   
The trees untwisted themselves and stood over the boy. Two terrible faces were carved into the bark. They sneered at the young prince. He screamed.   
“Oh come now” said the first voice, “that’s no way to treat your grandfathers.”   
“Indeed” said the other, “it figures our sons would raise a cowardly boy.”   
“I’m not a coward” yelled Wenceslaus, “I’m just scared and rightfully so.”   
The two trees laughed at him. Their branches wrapped around him and lifted him into the air. Wenceslaus screamed again. The trees laughed at him.   
“Alright boy, you fancy yourself to be brave, let’s see how brave you are now.”   
A chasm opened on the forest floor and the trees flung Wenceslaus into it. He screamed once more as he plunged into the dark abyss.

Wenceslaus woke with a start. He looked around. He was in his room, safe and sound. The forest and the trees had just been a bad dream, right? Then why did it seem so real. He was scared and didn’t think he could go back to sleep right away. So he ran to his parents room.   
He gently knocked on the door and entered the room.   
“Wenceslaus?” Said a groggy Amir.   
Apparently he had woken his fathers up.   
“What are you doing here?” Asked Rupert.   
“I’m sorry to bother you two” said the young prince, “it’s just...” tears started to form in his eyes “I had a bad dream.”   
Amir and Rupert looked at their son with worry. Then they looked at each other and came to a silent agreement.   
“Come up here into our bed and tell us about it” said Amir.   
Wenceslaus crawled into his parents bed and nestled himself between the two.   
“I was in the forest” said Wenceslaus, “and then I found two trees who said they were my grandpas. They called me weak and a coward and through me into chasm.”   
The two kings hugged their son to comfort him.   
“It’s ok” said Rupert, “it was just a dream.”   
“But what about my grandpas? You said they turned into trees just like in my dream.” Said Wenceslaus.   
“Yes it’s true” said Amir, “our fathers turned into trees and were the cause of the overgrown forest. But they disappeared along with the forest and are probably dead, so you don’t have to worry about them ever again.”   
“Ok” said Wenceslaus. But he didn’t look comforted.   
“Do you wanna stay with us for the night?” Asked Amir.   
Wenceslaus nodded. His fathers both put their arms around him and he nodded off. Once he was asleep Rupert asked Amir something that was weighing on his mind.   
“Amir” he said, “you don’t think they could actually be...”   
“No, it’s highly improbable” responded Amir, “Joan, the army and I have searched all over the continent for them but there’s no sign of them. They disappeared with the forest.”   
“But what if something does come after him?”   
“Then we will do our best to protect him and prepare him to face the dangers of the world when we’re not there to protect him”   
And so the two kings went to sleep with their son in their arms, protecting him from whatever nightmares may come in the night. And Wenceslaus has nothing but pleasant dreams for the rest of the night.


	6. Wenceslaus’ First Ball

The castle of the Heartland was alive with excitement. After much pressure from Lavinia, Rupert and Amir were about to hold the kingdoms first ball. Despite their reluctance at first, the two kings were actually very excited. Yes, the whole castle was happily preparing for the ball. Everyone except for Wenceslaus that is.   
The young prince was nervous for the ball, he was expected to attend with his fathers. He wasn’t exactly confident with his dancing skills, he was worried that he would embarrass his fathers with poor manners and to top it all off he was embarrassed by the outfit that his grandmother sent to him. It had way to many... (shudder) ruffles.   
He was pacing the floor of his room when his fathers came in.   
“Wenceslaus” said Amir, “why aren’t you ready yet?”   
“I’m not going.” Responded Wenceslaus.   
“What?” Exclaimed Rupert. “I thought you were looking forward to it?”   
“I was, but then I realized just how much I don’t know. What if I embarrass you two with my dancing or my manners. And that outfit Grandma Lavinia sent makes me look stupid.”   
“Wenceslaus” Amir said calmly, “you could never embarrass us. As for your manners, just eat like you do with us and be nice to everyone.”   
“As for the outfit” said Rupert, “I agree it looks stupid. I myself was subjected to her awful ruffles as a boy. And you know what? I always promised myself that I would make sure no child ever had to go through that again. So let’s look in your closet and see what we can find.”   
They opened his closet and looked through what formal outfits he had. In the end he decided on a green doublet with a brown vest and cape.   
“But what if Grandma Lavinia asks why I’m not wearing the outfit she sent me?” Asked Wenceslaus.   
“Just tell her that it didn’t feel right for the occasion.” Said Rupert. “Say that and she’ll understand without having her feelings hurt.”

“Now presenting King Rupert and King Amir of the Heartland and their son Prince Wenceslaus.” Announced the Chamberlain.   
The Royal Family entered the ballroom to applause from the people. Wenceslaus stood awkwardly between his fathers. They made their way up to the head table and sat down. Dinner began.   
Amir noticed that his son was looking around between bites.   
“Wenceslaus” he said, “It’s ok, nobody is going to judge you. They’re all focused on their own food.”   
And with that Wenceslaus was more confident about himself but still a little shy.   
When he went with his fathers to greet guests, he hid in their legs. However, they silently encouraged him to come out of their legs. He finally was interacting with guests but was only giving short one word answers. After a guest went back to enjoy the party, Rupert knelt down to talk to his son.   
“Wenceslaus” he said, “I know your nervous but, you gotta talk to the people. I promise you they’ll find you interesting and you will find them as well.”   
After that everyone who talked to the Royal Family was just in awe of the young prince. He was clever and funny, and the guests were all very impressed by his manners.   
However, when the dancing started the kings had to leave their son to open the floor with the first dance. Wenceslaus went over and stood with Lady Cecily.   
“Hello there Wenceslaus” greeted Cecily.   
“Hello Auntie Cecily, where’s Auntie Joan?” asked Wenceslaus.   
“Oh she had to patrol the courtyard real quick, but she’ll be back real soon.”   
The two kings ended their dance and a new song started up as more people took the floor.   
“Well Joan was supposed to dance with me, but she still isn’t here. Come Wenceslaus, dance with your Aunt Cecily.”   
“But, I’m not good at dancing, I’ll just embarrass you and myself.”   
“Nobody’s good at dancing and the only person who could embarrass me is me, and sometimes Joan. Come on let’s dance.”   
She dragged him out to the dance floor and began to dance with him. By the end of the song they were laughing and having fun.   
“Well well well” said a voice, “trying to steal my girlfriend while I’m on patrol?”   
They turned around and saw Joan standing before them with a smile on her face. She outstretched her hand to Cecily who took it and began dancing with her as the music started again.   
It was then when a young girl of Wenceslaus’ age approached him and asked him to dance. And so they began dancing. He learned that her name was Rachel and that she was from the village. They talked about animals and how excited they were for the coming school year as they danced. By the end of the night he made a friend.  
He returned to his fathers exhausted after dancing with Rachel all night.  
“I see you got yourself a girlfriend.” Teased Rupert.  
Wenceslaus’ cheeks turned pink.   
“She‘s not my girlfriend” said the young prince, “she’s a girl who happens to be my friend.”   
His fathers just smiled and went back about their business.   
Soon the ball ended, and the two kings thanked everyone as they left. Wenceslaus went to his room and as his dads tucked him in, he fell asleep happy and maybe, although he would never admit it, looking forward to the next ball and the next time he would see Rachel again. 


	7. First Day of School

Due to Wenceslaus’ years without any formal education, Amir and Rupert has hired tutors to catch him up on what he missed. After months of tutoring, he was finally ready to go to the school in the village. And just in time too because, his tutors deemed him ready two weeks before the new term started.   
Wenceslaus was excited to go to a school with other children his own age. Rupert and Amir were hesitant and nervous about it. On one hand, it would be nice for their son to be able to socialize. On the other hand, they were going to miss having their son around during the day. They considered having him in tutoring for one more year. In the end, they both agreed he was ready and needed to go to the school in the village.

The night before Wenceslaus’ first day of school, Rupert and Amir were tucking him in. However, they noticed that the young prince seemed off.   
“Wenceslaus” said Rupert, “is something wrong?”   
“I’m nervous about tomorrow” he responded, “What if I’m a bad student? What if the other kids don’t like me? What if the teacher is really mean?”   
“It’s ok son” responded Amir, “everything’s going to be fine.”   
“But I think” Wenceslaus continued, “most of all, I’m going to miss you two.”   
Rupert and Amir hugged their son.   
“It’ll be alright” comforted Rupert, “you’ll see us after school and we’ll be walking you to school in the morning.”   
The two kings bid their son good night and went to bed.

The next morning after breakfast, the two kings walked their son to school. The exited the castle, Wenceslaus between his two fathers holding each of their hands. Sir Joan and another knight followed as a form of protection. Of course it wasn’t expected that anyone would try and harm the kings but, they didn’t want to take any chances.   
As they reached the school, they saw some other parents with their children. Most we’re giving their kids a kiss on the cheek before sending them inside. They all stop however when the Royal Family came into view. Many of the families stared in awe, they had not been aware that the two kings were sending their son to the same school as their own kids.   
Wenceslaus’ cheeks turned red. It wasn’t that he was embarrassed by his fathers, he just was not used to all the attention.   
Rupert and Amir turned to their son.   
“Wenceslaus” said Rupert, “we’ll see you after school. Be good, make lots of friends, work hard.”   
“Just know that we’re proud of you” said Amir, “And as much as you miss us, we miss you too. And remember that we love you no matter what.”   
The two kings hugged the young prince, all had tears starting to form in their eyes. They let go and Wenceslaus made his way inside the school house. The two kings walked back to the castle hand in hand.

Rupert and Amir went about their day with a certain sadness. Knowing they had to wait until 3:00 to see their son, their hearts just weren’t in the work. They knew they had to accept this new normal soon, but today was the first day of not having their son around all the time so they had an excuse.   
  
It was 2:50 when they left the castle to go pick him up. When they arrived the kids were dismissed. When Wenceslaus saw his dads he ran all the way over to them and gave them both a great big hug. The smile on his face was incredibly wide. He waved to a couple of kids behind him, then took his fathers hands and they started to head back to the castle.   
“So how was your first day of school?” Asked Amir.   
“It was so great” answered the young prince, “we learned about animals and read a story. Then I made some friends, Charlie and Alex, and my friend Rachel was there and...”   
Wenceslaus went on very excited talking about his day. His fathers smiled and laughed with their son. They had nothing to worry about. Education wise, their son was going to be just fine. 


	8. Parent Teacher Confrence

Rupert and Amir were sitting in a small living room in the castle. Often they retired to this room at the end of a long day to relax. There were a few comfy chairs, a coffee table and a fireplace. A perfect spot to unwind at the end of the day. Rupert was reading a book while was sipping tea.   
Wenceslaus walked in at that moment looking very nervous. He had a letter in his hand.   
“Hey dads” said Wenceslaus, “I have this letter from my teacher.”   
Rupert and Amir looked at their son. He handed them the letter and they each took turns reading it. It was a letter from the teacher explaining that she was doing parent teacher conferences with each child’s parents.   
“I don’t know what I might have done wrong,” Said Wenceslaus, “I try to be a good student and be on my best behavior.”   
“What?” Asked Amir.   
“I don’t know why she might have called you guys in, I swear whatever it is I’ll try to do better.” Wenceslaus was crying now.   
Suddenly, Rupert and Amir understood.   
“Wenceslaus” Rupert said whole comforting the young prince, “she’s meeting with everyone’s parents. You’ve done nothing wrong, she just wants to let every parent know how their kid is doing.”   
“You sure I haven’t done anything wrong?” Asked Wenceslaus.   
“I don’t know” said Amir, “do you think you’ve done something wrong?”   
Wenceslaus shook his head.   
“Then you have nothing to worry about.”   
Wenceslaus nodded and then grabbed a book and sat down in a chair.

The next evening Rupert and Amir departed from the castle and headed over to the school. When they got there several other parents were waiting for their turn. Rupert and Amir got in line. The other parents looked shocked. The kings? Here? At a parent teacher conference? Yes, they of course would be there.   
The two kings chatted with the other parents. It was always nice to talk with the people of their kingdoms. Especially the families, The Heartland prided itself on being a great place to raise a family. Rupert and Amir would like to keep it like that. But for now they were just happy to meet other parents.

The time finally came for their turn. They said goodbye to the other parents and entered the school house.

Ms. Smith was getting ready for the next parents to enter. She was wondering if the kings would show up that night. Surely, they would be too busy. As the door opened she accidentally knocked over a pile of papers. She bent over to pick them up.   
“I’ll be with you in a moment.” She said.   
She picked up the papers and then sat back up at her desk and gasped. Sitting there were the kings.   
“Oh my, your majesties, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to keep you waiting I-“  
“Ms. Smith” said Rupert, “it’s ok. We understand you had to pick up your papers.”   
Ms. Smith nodded still flustered and straightened the papers on her desk. Rupert and Amir smiled.   
“Well, um Wenceslaus is doing...(gulp)... good?” She said unconvincingly.   
“Ms. Smith, there’s no need to be so nervous. We want Wenceslaus to get the most out of his educating just as much as you do.” Said Amir.   
“Yes, it just I didn’t expect you two to come tonight.”   
“Why not?”   
“Well I thought, you know, you two run the kingdom that you would be too busy to come to something as trivial as a parent teacher conference.”   
Rupert and Amir looked at each other, then back at Ms. Smith.  
“We understand why you would think that but, when we adopted Wenceslaus we made a point to be involved.” Said Amir.   
“We may not have been there for the first seven years of his life. We missed his birth and first steps but we want to be the best parents we could for him.” Said Rupert.   
“My apologies” said Ms. Smith, “I did not mean to imply that I thought you would be bad parents.”   
“None taken. We typically get our royal duties done by dinner so we can do things like this and spend some nice quality family time.”   
“We’ll anyways, pWenceslaus has done very well in most of his classes. On the social front he seems to be making friends with the other children. He’s very well behaved. The only problem we’ve encountered is that he is struggling in math.”   
“Is there anything we can do at home to help him?”   
“Help him with his homework, that should do it.”   
They chatted with the teacher for a few more minutes and then their time was up. They said goodbye to the teacher and headed back to the castle.

“How much trouble am I in?” Asked Wenceslaus as his fathers walked in the door.   
“None” said Amir, “your doing very well and the teacher had a lot of positive things to say about you. But your not doing as good in math.”   
“Wenceslaus” Rupert kneeled down next to his son, “you know if you need help with homework Amir and I are always here if you need us.”   
The young prince nodded. The family spent some nice quality time together before going to bed. And so everything was peaceful for the Royal Family.


	9. A Tragic Visit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair Warning this one is a bit more serious than the other chapters.

There was a thunderstorm going on in the Heartland. As a result most people stayed inside. The Royal Family was no different. It was a Saturday and they seemed to have the whole day free. Nothing to trouble them all day. That was until after lunch.   
Everyone had been going about their own business. Rupert had been reading in the library, Amir was practicing swordplay with Joan, and Wenceslaus was in the living room drawing. Suddenly, there was a loud and frantic knock at the castle door. The Royal Family plus Joan ran into the entry hall when the Chamberlain opened the door. A young women entered dripping wet and heavily pregnant.   
“Your majesties” she bowed and then collapsed. She clutched her stomach and groaned in pain.   
Rupert, Amir and Joan ran to her side.   
“Help me pick her up” said Rupert, “we’ll get her to a room.”   
The three adults did just that as they carried her off to the nearest bedroom. The young woman was clearly in labor.   
Wenceslaus stood in shock. What just happened? Who was that woman? Why did she come here? These were all questions that raced through his mind. The Chamberlain put an hand on Wenceslaus’ shoulder.   
“Come now Wenceslaus, let’s go get some hot chocolate from the kitchen.”

In the bedroom where they brought the young woman, the kings and the knight were in panic mode. The young woman was in labor and they needed to help her.   
“Joan” said Amir, “Go see if you can find the castle doctor.”   
The knight nodded and left the room. Rupert took the young woman’s hand as she felt a contraction.   
“You’re going to be ok” said Rupert, “What’s your name?”   
“Maria” she responded, “I’m sorry to bother you like this your majesties. I ran here from the Hinterlands after I was kicked out of my home.”   
“What happened?” Asked Amir.   
“My boyfriend ran off a month ago, leaving me all alone. A week ago some thief chased me away from my house.”   
The two princes sat with her as she went through labor. Joan arrived later with the doctor.   
The doctor went to work coaching Maria through the birth. After about an hour she gave birth to a baby girl.   
“Let me hold her.” Said Maria, “Welcome to the world little Julia.”   
She smiled right before she passed out. This would have been normal, if not for that fact she wasn’t breathing.   
“Maria?”

Rupert and Amir held the new born child as her mother’s body was taken out of the castle to a burial ground. They had a decision to make.

Wenceslaus was sitting in the living room sipping a hot chocolate with the Chamberlain. His fathers entered. The looked at the Chamberlain who nodded and left the room.   
“Wenceslaus” said Amir, “we have some bad news.”   
“What is it?” Asked the young prince.   
“That young woman who came into the castle today has died.” Said Rupert.  
“Oh no.” Responded Wenceslaus.   
“She has left behind a little baby girl named Julia.”   
“We came to talk to you because as a family we need to make a decision.”   
“Your father and I want to adopt the little girl, but first we wanted to see how you would feel about having a sibling.”   
Wenceslaus pondered for a moment and then nodded. The two kings smiled.  
“Can I meet her?” Asked Wenceslaus.   
The family exited the room and entered a makeshift nursery. There sleeping in the crib was the baby.   
“Wenceslaus, meet your new baby sister. Princess Julia.” 


End file.
